Raza Naeem's talk on the 50th assassination anniversary of Sheikh Mujibur Rehman at RPC

Raza Naeem will deliver a talk at the Research and Publication Centre (RPC) on the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rehman on Friday, August 15, 2025 at 6:00 pm.

This talk reflects upon the historical legacy and memory of Sheikh Mujibur Rehman in pre-1971 Pakistan (the unfinished baggage of the partition of 1947), and more recently, in Post-'Naya Pakistan' on the occasion of Mujib's 50th assassination anniversary (August 15, 1975). It traces Mujib's career in Pakistan as a loyal Muslim Leaguer and then as a faithful lieutenant of Fatima Jinnah before becoming the 'separatist' and 'traitor' that he was branded as subsequently after March 9, 1971. The question my talk then asks is: 'Did Mujibur Rehman want to break Pakistan?' It falls back then on a comparison with how the founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah himself was branded as a traitor and separatist, accused of wanting to break up India. Indeed the word 'traitor' is still being used with impunity to demonize every opponent of the political establishment in post-'Naya Pakistan', from the mainstream politicians like Nawaz Sharif of the Pakistan Muslim League and Imran Khan of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf to the Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement leaders Manzoor Pashteen, its elected leaders in Pakistan's parliament Mohsin Dawar and Ali Wazir, and the Baloch Yakjehti Commitee led by Dr Mahrang Baloch, all of whom repeatedly pledge to work within the Constitution of Pakistan. 

Raza Naeem is an award-winning Pakistani writer, researcher and translator, trained in Political Economy at the University of Leeds, UK and in Middle Eastern History at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, US. He is based in Lahore as an Instructor of Pakistan Studies (History) at Lahore Grammar School and as the President of the Progressive Writers Association (Anjuman Taraqqi Pasand Mussanifeen). The research for this talk has been ongoing since 2020 (Mujib's centenary year) based on South Asian collections kept in the British Library in London and scores of interviews with Pakistan's politicians, historians and activists.  

All friends are welcome. Lift is operational. Tea will be served.

Adress: Research and Publication Centre (RPC), 2nd Floor, 65 Main Boulevard Gulberg, Lahore (next to Standard Chartered Bank, above Indesign showroom).

Rashed Rahman

Editor, Pakistan Monthly Review (PMR) (link: pakistanmonthlyreview.com)

Director, Research and Publication Centre (RPC) (on Facebook)